filibuster Definition
fili·bus·ter (fil′i bus′tər)
noun
- an adventurer who engages in unauthorized warfare against a country with which his own country is at peace; specif., any of the 19th-cent. U.S. adventurers who led armed expeditions into Latin American countries; freebooter
- ☆
- the making of long speeches, introduction of irrelevant issues, etc. in order to obstruct the passage of a bill in the Senate
- a member of the Senate who uses such methods
Etymology: Sp filibustero < Fr flibustier, earlier fribustier < MDu vrijbuiter, freebooter
intransitive verb
- to engage in unauthorized warfare as a freebooter
- ☆ to engage in a filibuster
transitive verb
☆ to obstruct the passage of (a bill) by a filibuster
filibuster Synonyms
filibuster
n.
filibuster Usage Examples
Adjective modifier
Democratic: Bush also faces the prospect of a Democratic filibuster in the Senate to block his latest nomination to the Supreme Court, Samuel Alito.
Browse dictionary entries near filibuster
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